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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsBiohazard in my mailbox
I just heard the mail jeep pull up, and I looked out to see if he was putting anything in my mailbox. Hey, it's snowing, and cold, so I don't want to head outside, if I don't have to.
What do I see but the mailman going through just about a full minute of sneezing and nose blowing, then digging into his little cooler to extract what I think was some sort of cold medication that he washed down with some bottled water. THEN he put some letters in the mail box. Ghaaaaaaa. I don't worry about flu, but I sure as hell don't want to handle his cold virus.
I think I might leave it outside, for a while, so that maybe the cold will kill what ever he added to the delivery. This is a very grotty time of the year, that's for sure.
Buzz Clik
(38,437 posts)Just pop your mail in an autoclave.
Agnosticsherbet
(11,619 posts)Just put it to sleep.
PoliticAverse
(26,366 posts)Great observation!
This is why I always wash my hands after going out to get my mail.
I can't count the numbers of times I've gotten a cold or something, and I hadn't even been out in public.
It had to have been the mail.
I don't know what, if any, microbes will be killed off by freezing, but hopefully you don't end up catching whatever came flying out the mail guy's nose.
formercia
(18,479 posts)You would think that living in the far North would protect you from Pandemics, but, thanks to the US Mail, some of the Virus managed to survive and once infected the Flu spread like Wildfire, nearly wiping out whole Villages of Inuit who had little immunity to to Flu, if any.
Siwsan
(26,268 posts)It's been a while since I've been flattened by a cold, which makes me all that much more worried about this year.
whistler162
(11,155 posts)someone could have sent you a loaf of sourdough bread!
NOW THAT IS A BIO-HAZARD.
MineralMan
(146,317 posts)They're cheap. In a situation like that, you pull a pair on, open your mail and discard the envelopes. They're useful for many jobs where you might pick up some nasty stuff. There's a box in the second drawer on the far left of my kitchen sink cabinet. I use them for many reasons, like cleaning doggie accidents and handling the moldy, rotten onion I forgot about.
There's no reason not to take such precautions, and plenty of reasons to do so. The other option is to wash your hands thoroughly or use hand sanitizer after handling nasty things, but before touching other things or your face.
Life's full of nasty things. Smart people deal with them intelligently and don't bother even discussing such occasions.
bluestate10
(10,942 posts)MineralMan
(146,317 posts)They're cheap and indispensable. Avoiding illness is the best way to stay healthy.
bluestate10
(10,942 posts)paper towels dampened with rubbing alcohol and allow them to sit for several minutes before opening them.
Siwsan
(26,268 posts)That's GOTTA kill the virus.
Cleita
(75,480 posts)offending mailbox and mail with disinfectant. The cold won't kill all microbes, just make some of the dormant until you take them inside and you might hope those aren't the viruses you are trying to avoid.
datasuspect
(26,591 posts)Siwsan
(26,268 posts)I've been pretty lucky, so far. A few co-workers have been sick, and one moron came in, infested wtih SCABIES. Yes, active scabies. Yet, I have remained unscathed - so far. However, that hazmat suit would have been tempting to wear to work, if only to make a point that people with active SCABIES infestations should NOT be coming in to work.